Training

A Pre-Race Moment of Reflection

Training is almost over, you’re in the middle in the taper, and you’re filled with restless excitement for race day. Which, on one hand, is a great thing: You can stay up to watch Master of None without feeling guilty. On the other hand, you’ve got all this energy and, because you can’t run your ya-yas away, it has nowhere to go. Some of it gets channeled to your mind, which can’t help but wonder if you’re ready to go: if the training you’ve done is really enough to get you up and over the hills; if you’ve got what it takes to tackle 13.1 miles in the way you hope you can; if you really want to put yourself out there.

The best way to quiet your doubts? Take a little time this week to reflect on the journey you’ve been on through your training cycle.

You’ve probably run in some extreme conditions; maybe it was crazy heat, maybe it was the pouring rain. You’ve definitely run when you didn’t want to. You’ve probably bailed on some social plans—drinks with friends, book group—so that you could get up and get your long run in. You’ve resisted hitting the snooze button when it would have felt oh-so-good to sleep in. You’ve kept running when every fiber in your body told you to stop. You’ve likely asked your body to run faster or farther than it ever has.

In other words, you’ve done some seriously hard work, and now it’s time to trust that by reminding yourself all you’ve done: